Spring Training breaks ground

Earlier today in Glendale, AZ, the groundbreaking ceremony took place for the new Spring Training site that will open there in 2009. I was back here in Los Angeles manning the fort, but I’ve been told it was a very cool event with Dodger fans showing up to welcome the team to Arizona. I continue to have problems posting photos to this blog, but there should be a photo gallery up shortly on dodgers.com with the highlights.

Tomorrow we’ll have another press conference, this one in Pasadena, to unveil the look of the Dodger float that will be in the Rose Parade. We’ll have several of the people who will be riding the float on hand with plenty more still to announce about the 50th anniversary celebration.

Also, our hearty congrats go out to Andy LaRoche, Delwyn Young and the rest of Team USA, which took home the gold over the weekend. You can read more on the USA Baseball website.

In addition, I caught up with Manny Mota earlier today from the Dominican Republic and he told me how excited he is about the 2008 season and for this Thursday, when he’ll be hosting 1,000 children at a Thanksgiving dinner in Santo Domingo through the Manny Mota International Foundation.

We should all be thankful for what we have at every time during the year but it’s this time of year that we’re reminded of it so regularly.

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NO! NO! NO! This just appeared:

The Dodgers stand a better chance of acquiring Cabrera from the Marlins, major-league sources say, if they are willing to part with outfielder Matt Kemp along with third baseman Andy LaRoche and Class AA left-hander Clayton Kershaw.

This is insane! Please say it isn’t true. Hurry up, Angels, sign Cabrera and save the Dodgers from another big mistake!!

Sorry, I didn’t see that as this was at the top when I looked, but it needs to be continued here anyway. The Dodgers need to hear from the fans loud and clear in the hope that it will bring sanity to the situation!

Yeah we all know the idea of Kemp, Kershaw and LaRoche for Cabrera is insane. That’s why the Marlins want it. Who wouldn’t want those three in a trade? Too bad it’s not going to happen for them, so sad.

Josh — Thanks for doing a great job! Just another regular fan piping in — I do NOT want to trade Kemp, Kershaw or Laroche. Am happy to go with the players we have, plus new mgmt. If Laroche doesn’t work out this year, then next yr we can look for a 3rd baseman. I don’t think Rowand is much of an upgrade from Ethier.

Ken Rosenthal is the same fool who flogged the Loney for Texiera nonsense all summer long, and that was based primarily on the desires of the Rangers.

You really have to read this weasels story closely to see that he is, most likely, full of it. Here’s what he says: “The Dodgers stand a better chance of acquiring Cabrera from the Marlins, major-league sources say, if they are willing to part with outfielder Matt Kemp along with third baseman Andy LaRoche and Class AA left-hander Clayton Kershaw.” IF they are willing to part with all three. IF the Dodgers are willing to part with all three of those players, we could get almost anyone in trade.

Rosenthal then suggests that the Dodgers would move Pierre to left field and that this would make them better offensively. How does that work, exactly???

Rosenthal is really clearly pushing the Florida line here–grasping for straws to make it sound like a good trade. He brushes away the huge cost factor that comes with trading away 3 stars-to-be who are cost controlled for a guy who is not, ignoring that there is no limitless resources even for the Dodgers (for now). He says that there is pressure for Colletti to make a big move (there is not–Josh, we all want to make very clear–THERE IS NO PRESSURE FOR NED TO MAKE A MOVE–I THINK I SPEAK FOR ALMOST EVERY INFORMED FAN WHEN I SAY THAT STANDING PAT IS ONE OF THE BEST RESULTS THAT COULD HAPPEN IN THE OFF-SEASON. A lot of people rightly want a new Centerfielder, but not at the cost of displacing Kemp or Ethier–they want to move Pierre. Alot of people would have been on board for a free agent 3B–like ARod–but most people think that we should give LaRoche a real chance).

He also flogs the line about Kemp’s attitude. Basically, the only person who has said that has been Jeff Kent–a guy with known attitude problems (which is OK–fundamentally, if you play that well, it’s not a reason to be traded–which is why Kent would not be traded in his prime, and why Kemp should not be).

Rosenthal does not cite Dodger sources–or even Marlin sources–but “major-league sources.” Look, it does not take a genius to figure out that “IF” the Dodgers were willing to give up those three players, they would be the front-runner for any trade. In other words, some guy in baseball said “hey, if the Dodgers are dumb enough to give up talent like that, OF COURSE they’ll land Cabrera.”

What that shows, more than anything, is that we should not be so dumb.

I still go back to what Torre said earlier, that he does not see any gaping holes or a need for a roster overhaul. There has been a lot of question over who/what philosophy has been guiding the Dodgers. I don’t REALLY know what Ned thinks (though we’re all scared that he is in love with old guys), and we assume that Logan White is for the youth movement. But I am pretty confident about this–the most important voice in player personnel decisions this off-season is not going to be Ned Colletti, Logan White, or Kim Ng. McCourt hired Joe Torre for a reason, and it’s because he’s the best baseball man in the organization. If Torre says to trade Kemp–he’s gone. If he says to keep him, he stays. Free Agents depend on numbers getting crunched, but I am relying on Torre here.

Matt Kemp for Eric Bedard??! Are you kidding me, Ned? You’ve discussed this deal? I certainly hope you’re not truly considering it. Bedard. That rhymes with a name I’ll call you if you make a deal this bad.

Please, someone tell Ned the only moves that should be made are to lose Pierre (I don’t care if we pick up the majority of his contract. Who care?! Are we trying to get better? Then do it!), sign Jones, Hunter or Rowand and sign Hiroki Kuroda. Then call it an offseason!

If nothing else, all these rumors tell us that Colletti is actively shopping cheap, young talent. Every single story thats out there, from multiple sources mind you, includes the names Kemp, LaRoche, Kershaw, or Loney. It can’t possibly be that Colletti has no intention of trading these guys; I simply refuse to be that cynical about sports reporters.

Its not the individual trade proposals that get to me because I realize they are, for the most part, pure fantasy. Whats really maddening is Colletti is even entertaning the possibility of getting rid of premium cheap, young talent. Why doesn’t he go the other way and try to get rid of our worthless parts? Nomar & Pierre would be a good start. Instead, he appears to be laboring to give away our most valuable assets. It doesn’t take much to realize that the asking price guys like Cabrera is prohibitively high. He should just say no thanks and move on. If these stories tell us anything at all, its that he has yet to do that. And for that, I will continue to question his competence.

I like Kemp as much as the next ITD blogger, but Bedard for Kemp is actually not that terrible (its comparable on the talent level). Look at Bedard’s #s the past 2 years, look at his age and think about how many left-handers dominate the game the way he has recently. I can think of Santana and maybe Hamels, and that makes him a valuable commodity (10.9 K/9 is nothing to scoff at). A future staff anchored by 2 dominate lefties (Kershaw and Bedard) and a power-pitching righty (Billingsley) would be a beautiful thing. I would not personally want to see this trade happen but it certainly is not the end of the world (you also have to keep in mind that Bedard put up those numbers in the AL East). I would also figure that we would go sign Jones/Hunter/Rowand to supplement the loss of Kemp. A potential rotation of:
Penny

Bedard

Lowe

Billingsley

Loaiza/Schmidt/Kershaw/Wolf(?)

would immediately put us in serious contention, especially if Schmitty can come back healthy.

I agree with you Manny. And nice long post Alex. I can’t even begin to share how angry/sad/disapointed/dumfounded/fill in the blank I’ll be if Ned makes a move just to make a move. Of course, he’ll present it as a victory for LA (i.e., Jason Schmidt, Juan Pierre, Luis Gonzalez, et al) and hold a press conference telling us how so-and-so is a “proven winner” and the “leadership” that he’ll bring to the club is intangible.

“The Los Angeles Dodgers and Baltimore Orioles have discussed the parameters of a trade that would send left-hander Erik Bedard to the Dodgers for a package that includes 23-year-old outfielder Matt Kemp, according to a source familiar with the talks.”

1. Who is this “source”? Much like Scott Boras enjoys setting prices in the press for his free agents, don’t you think GMs like to float rumors like this to try and inflate the trade costs for their assets?

2. A Kemp-Bedard straight-up deal is not something to dismiss out of hand, as charris1010321 points out; Bedard is good, and two seasons from FA. “A package that includes … Kemp”, however, is a horse of a different color.

3. Once a sportswriter has a source that says “Dodgers” and veers into speculation, the same young players’ names are ALWAYS going to come up, they are cheap, good and their names have been printed a lot lately.

4. “discussed the parameters” could be the following conversation:

Andy MacPhail / Mike Flanagan: “Say Ned, got any interest in Bedard?”

Ned Colletti: “Well, sure, I’d be a fool not to have any, right? I could offer you something, how about James McDonald, Blake DeWitt and Lucas May – you guys have a lot of holes and these are good prospects.”

MacFlanagan: “We were thinking more in terms of Matt Kemp, because we need a CF upgrade, James Loney, Clayton Kershaw – always need pitching – and Chin-Ling Hu, because we’ll need **** after we trade Miguel Tejada to the Angels.”

Ned: “Are you kidding? Bedard is too young to make Jeff Kent happy and too fans have fallen in love with the ‘kids'; I can’t even call them prospects anymore without being lambasted on talk radio and blogs, whatever they are.” (slams phone into cradle)

MacFlanagan: “Roberta, get Tim Brown, Ken Rosenthal or one of those other media weasels on the horn. Tell them you heard that we and the Dodgers discussed the parameters of a Bedard for Kemp-featured package trade.”

I agree with old_fogey here, and on the last thread he and ewk both mentioned that Ned has not traded away one of our prized prospects (only guys who were not panning out–and I’ll even give something of a pass on Edwin Jackson if he does pan out, because he looked to be lost).

It still scares me though, in part because I trust Tim Brown more than Rosenthal, but also because any trade talk scares me (because it almost always includes guys we should not be dealing). But it also appears that the O’s are talking with Bedard about an extension, so that may pre-empt it all.

That being said, I think we’re still going to come through the off-season OK (i.e. not losing one of our future superstars).

Great looking plans for the new Spring Training facility. I have very mixed emotions–as a traditionalist, I love DodgerTown, but the realist in me understands that the time has come for the Dodgers to move west for Spring Training too.

Nevertheless, I really hope that the Dodgers put in a full spring in Vero Beach, if this is to be our last season there. I understand the desire to play exhibition games in Asia, but a lot of people are hoping to make one last pilgrimage to Dodgertown, and some people–myself included–are hoping to visit it for the first time before it becomes just a memory like Ebbetts Field. Knowing the history of the place, the Dodgers need to make sure they are there as long as possible to allow people one last chance to experience it. With the Dodgers in Arizona for the Spring in the future, I will probably go more often, but I don’t think anything will replace the chance to go to Dodgertown, and they should be there as long as possible to accomodate that.

Like everyone else in here, I wonder why Kemp’s name keeps appearing in rumors? And Kershaw’s? A four-tool, young outfielder and a young, p[opwer lefty don’t just fall into your lap every day. We haven’t even seen what these guys can do. I know the trade mantra is to trade a guy a year early as oppposed to a year late…but Kemp and kershaw aren’t even “early” yet. About the only player worth Kemp is Cabrera, and that’s without including LaRoche or Kershaw or both. And a pitcher like Bedard (oblique), any pitcher for that matter, is an injury waiting to happen. See Schmidt.

So I’ll go on nrecord with the majority in here: keep the kids. What’s the big hurry? Like we’re a player away from a World Championship or something?

If I were a GM I’d certainly be most interested in Kemp, Kershaw, & LaRoche as they are our highest ceiling players who aren’t guaranteed to be starters next year…therefore they appear to be expendable. I can’t fault other GM’s for wanting them. When other GM’s mention them, it hits the press. That doesn’t mean we’re going to yield to their demands.

Everybody wants these guys. I just hope our front office wants them more. I think it’s fine to inquire about Cabrera, Bedard, or Santana to see how motivated their GM’s are to deal them. We don’t have to give them what they ask for. We can easily walk away without a deal, knowing that we still have some of the most valued prospects in all of MLB.

We’ll still have a talented team without making any moves at all. The addition of 1 or 2 free agents would be alright if Ned really has an itch to modify the team. But if you sign a FA CF, you’ll be forced to trade or release an OF.

Every team that talks trade with the Dodgers wants Kemp for CF. We have Kemp and we keep talking about a CF upgrade. Kemp should be our CF upgrade. If he plays regularly all year I bet his numbers will be close to or exceed the players Colletti is anxious to sign. An everyday outfield of Young, Kemp, and Ethier would be a definite upgrade over last year and would provide the power we crave. Stop looking elsewhere for outfield upgrades! Concentrate on moving Pierre. He doesn’t fit our outfield needs, and having two lead-off hitters was a dumb idea from day one.

Personally, i dont want Kemp playing CF. Its nice to know he can, but with three gold glove CF on the market the question becomes why not improve the OF? And i would also say that an outfield of Ethier, Rowand, Kemp would be a definate improvement over anything with Kemp in center…

No doubt about it Scott, that would be a beastly lineup (regardless of which CF we sign)… Of course, it would leave us a little weak in the pitching department, but hopefully with McDonald and Kershaw in the pipeline we could manage…. I think we should definately re-sign Wolf, even if it mean out-bidding the Phillies. Assuming we do the staff looks like:
Penny

Lowe

Bills

Wolf

Schmidt/Loaiza

Its still pretty weak, but without Wolf it seems like a huge hole. By that same token, id let McDonald be a starter at the beginning of the 2008 season… BUT i doubt that happens.

My real preference would be that Kent retire and not come back for his final year. At the same time, I’m afraid that if we lose this veteran, Colletti and probably Torre as well will feel compelled to get another veteran to take his place. They won’t want to have 3/4 of the infield in the hands of young players, leaving aside the possibility of Nomar playing third. If that’s going to be the outcome, then I’d rather see Kent back for another year, rather than see us give up a bunch of prospects like Kemp, etc. to bring Cabrera to our infield.

Also, if Kent retires, it frees up another 9 million in salary to help pay for Cabrera. Personally, I’m not too worried about the Dodgers trading away our future for Cabrera. The Angels seem the likeliest trading partner with Florida…..yesterday’s trade with the Chisox just about confirms that theory.

IMO, the only way you trade away a talent like Kemp is if he really does have an attitude problem that can’t be fixed. But he’s no Joel Guzman. He hit .340 in over 200 ab’s.

We need to be very careful about letting him go. Guys that can hit for average are hard to find, let alone avg and power and speed.

Kemp and Elbert for Cabrera maybe, but no LaRoche or Kershaw too. Then put Cabrera in LF, Jones in CF and Ethier or Young in RF. You still have LaRoche at 3B. If Florida wants more, than I say go **** someone else.

I guess the Dodgers continue to move further & further away from it’s birth place(Brooklyn, N.Y.). Now it’s spring training will take place even farther down the road in 2009. I have to say here I’ve taken several trips down to Florida in my lifetime, always thinking about Vero Beach, but to my regret never made plans on going there, while it was the Dodgers’ Spring Training Home. Perhaps I felt it would alway be there. Presently I lack the time and finances. I’ve drawn closer to the team than I’ve been in 50 years, since I bought my P.C. I am hoping to some day go to L.A. I hope they don’t move before I get there. Congradulations to TEAM USA for bringing home the GOLD.

This attitude “problem” of Kemp’s is being way way over blown. Just consider the source. Jeff Kent, Nomar and Gonzo. Those three were the biggest problems in the clubhouse. Not the kids. I think Kemp will get traded if Kent returns. If Kent retires it’s another story. Traded Kemp and keeping Pierre just doesn’t make sense. I think Ned is trying to ease the “club house tension” by making the Kids look like the problem and appeasing the Old Farts.

Without Kemp, Loney and Billingsley last year we would have finished below the Giants. Same with the year before. The Dodgers really have a bad way of showing appreciation to the guys who have saved their **** for the last 2 years.

I have an insane theory. Not always, but most of the time, Ned wants to keep players he can be credited for. When the young guys (sans Andre) do well, he can’t take credit for their success. In some cases, he gets anti-credit because he did his best to make sure they wouldn’t play. Look at the things he’s said.. hoping Nomar would return to form, singing the praises of pierre, kent, etc… propping up Schmidt as the “ace” of the rotation when we already had one in Penny. If the only things we have going for us are things Ned can’t take credit for, whether it be Depo acquisitions or White’s draft, Ned’s job becomes endangered. He has to prove to everyone that he has made this team better, and perhaps by jettionsing the things he can’t take credit for. Feel free to disagree, just a theory.

I vote to get rid of the 2 biggest losers: Kemp and LaRoche. They’re not worth taking a chance on-both are’nt reliable. Get somebody that will help us for them before the next season shows exactly what they’re worth-zippo!

max I have to agree with you on that one. Everybody knows that I don’t care for Kemp to much but to trade him and keep Pierre would be completely stupid. If Kemp goes in a package then you have to get a replacement for him plus pitching in the trade. If you can’t get that then he needs to stay. Pierre is a great person that busts his *** on the field but he just doesn’t fit with the Dodgers. Maybe a team looking for a leadoff hitter could use him but we don’t need him. If we want to improve then we need to sign Jones and trade for a starting pitcher. That would be the best way. The only other way I think we can improve is if we trade Pierre and play LaRoche at 3B. We don’t need Cabrera unless he is traded for LaRoche and maybe 2 other lower level pitching prospects. To me that’s equal value. But like I said you can’t trade Kemp and keep Pierre. That would be dumb.

Bedard for Kemp is actually not that terrible (its comparable on the talent level). Look at Bedard’s #s the past 2 years, look at his age and think about how many left-handers dominate the game the way he has recently.

************

I’ve got to strongly disagree with you here, charris. And I’ll tell you why.

martinloneykemp, we can agree to disagree. I’m sure you read my entire post and saw the part where I said that I wouldn’t want the move to happen but I also think you’re cherry-picking your stats on Bedard. I looked at his second half numbers from ’06 and ’07 and they look great. Using terms like “his effectiveness goes into a freefall in August” is a bit of a stretch.

August-October ’06:

3.55 ERA

8.3 K/9

August ’07:

3.67 ERA

10.4 K/9

His career numbers in September are better than his August numbers so the inflated career ERA in August is a bit of an anomaly. His oblique strain this past year hardly qualifies him as injury prone and I would go as far as to say that he is currently a top ten pitcher in the game.

i am a ucla fan so i have always like ariza… he is raw offensively and can’t shoot but he is a freak athlete and he is a long defender and good rebounder so when he reports tomorrow night he will probably start at the 4 until Ronny comes back. The lakers will have two incredibly athletic forwards with Ariza and Odom

The Dodgers stand a better chance of acquiring Cabrera from the Marlins, major-league sources say, if they are willing to part with outfielder Matt Kemp along with third baseman Andy LaRoche and minor-league left-hander Clayton Kershaw.

The teams are in disagreement on only “one piece,” according to a source, who declined to specify what that piece might be. The Marlins are further apart with the Angels, the source said.”

If the Marlins would accept something else in place of Kemp, anything else aside from another player in our starting lineup(I know they don’t want Pierre but if they can accomodate him, that would be fine), then I’d be fine with that trade.

I’m starting to lean on the side of doing this trade BUT Kemp is an absolute deal breaker. I completely understand LaRoche would have to go in a deal for Cabrera. I can’t wrap my head around trading Kershaw or Kemp, let alone both of them. Find another way or leave it alone. Slip them some ‘cash considerations’ and throw in some class A prospects with LaRoche. Otherwise we need to move on…

Loney is a future Gold Glove first baseman, Pierre will never be considered a gold glove anywhere. I disagree with that move for them to switch positions because it would weaken the team at first and in the outfield. Pierre removed from the team would solve most of our defensive problems. That and playing both Ethier and Kemp consistantly. Throw in Jones or Rowand and there wouldn’t be a weak link in our outfield.

The hardest thing to do is unload Pierre. What he can’t do here, he can’t do anywhere, this was a MISTAKE. If we can’t trade him or bench him, the only place else to put him is at first base since he is a left handed fielder. I think it’s the best move, other than making him a utility player, because of his speed and timely hitting, or trade him which would shock the heck out of me. I’d be shock that anyone would trade FOR him.

Everyone says that the Dodgers need more power, yet the player that is always mentioned in the trade talks has the most power potential on the team. It doesn’t make any sense to trade Kemp when power is what is needed. It just becomes a wash or less instead of an addition. Cabrera should only be obtained in a trade for LaRoche and a couple of lesser prospects at most. With LaRoche’s potential, giving anything more is paying way too much!! And Cabrera shouldn’t be signed at all without a contract extension. The talk of including Kemp and/or Kershaw for Cabrera is just plain stupid and shows only an egotistical need to make a splash, regardless of its long term adverse affect on the team. And Loney should be absolutely untouchable and should never be moved from 1B. He will be the class of the league for years to come at that position.

The biggest addition for the Dodgers this off-season would best be obtained by subtraction. I admire Pierre’s attitude and work ethic, but he doesn’t fit the Dodgers’ needs and never did. Ned make a huge mistake in signing him to a long-term contract, and Ned needs to admit it and take corrective action!

I agree with you 100%, Redfox. But can you tell me what the corrective action is? I hate to say this but I think we are about to lose a front line Dodger for Cabrera. Sometime, even maybe before Thanksgiving. I feel I’ll be crossing out a name on my “Hope they don’t trade list”. Remember the old saying Value for Value.

I don’t understand why everybody seems so insistent that we need to pick up a power hitter

These very conservative estimates indicate that simply by playing our best players every day, we will have decent power in 2008:

Furcal — 12

Martin — 20

Kemp — 25

Loney — 20

Kent — 20

Ethier — 15

LaRoche — 15

LF (as long as it’s not Pierre) — 12+

Bench — 15

Total — 154

Even a moderate amount of optimism brings it up to 170 (add 5 to Loney, 5 to LaRoche, and 4 more spread around).

Even at 154 HR, we’re in the middle of the pack among NL teams, and that’s without playing in a bandbox or a launching pad.

Yes, adding a FREE AGENT like Jones or Hunter would add 15-30 HRs and should be done. That would bring us to about 175+ HRs, a very respectable number.

On the other hand trading away Matt Kemp for Miguel Cabrera would only result in a net gain of about 5 to 8 homeruns if looked at in isolation, and assuming that Cabrera continues his historical production while Kemp hits about 25 HR. If you consider that Kemp leaving would virtually ensure the continuation of Juan Pierre in the lineup, the net result of Dodger homeruns is a negative.

martinloneykemp.
yes you are right trading Kemp for Cabrera you gaing 5-8 homeruns. But you can’t compare Matt Kemp presence at the plate to Miguel Cabrera. Cabrera is a natural power hitter. You can be sure that he will hit 30+Hr’s 100+

Rbi’s. But I agree we should not trade any of the kids away, they all have alot of potential. We just need to add some power through trade. Andrew Jones would be a good pick up. He is a true clean up hitter. Yes he did have a bad season. But he has always had good numbers, he is good for 4 more years. And as far as 3rd base goes. I am still not convince with LaRoche at third.

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